Uncle Franky’s Hot Dogs

Next time you eat a hot dog, don’t put ketchup on it because those are the rules. It’s National Hot Dog month in July and Steven Krelitz, owner of Uncle Franky's Hot Dogs, explains what you can do to make your hot dog less boring to eat!

If you are over 18, its tacky to put ketchup on a hot dog, event though it’s the #2 condiment to top it with behind mustard

The mustard always touches the meat

A hot dog should be eaten with your hands – no silverware required

Eat every part of the hot dog (including leftover bun bits), pair it with simple drinks and sides, and always lick off any condiments that you find on your fingers.

Hot Dog History and Facts

Essentially, hot dogs are a modern-day twist on the humble sausage—a food that has some seriously ancient roots. Sausages were mentioned in Homer’s The Odyssey, and Emperor Nero’s chef, Gaius, is said to have prepared them for his ruler.

Centuries later, someone got the idea to put the meaty treats on buns—

To this day, several conflicting claims exist. According to the Austrian city of Vienna, two Austro-Hungarian immigrants, Emil Reichel and Sam Ladany, invented the hot dog in their fair town. When the two men left Europe for Chicago, they took the recipe with them, and sold hot dogs at the 1893 World’s Fair. Later, Reichel and Ladany founded a famous beef production company that’s still churning out hot dogs today.

However, officials in Frankfurt, Germany, say that hot dogs were invented in their city in 1487. And according to a third tale, a butcher named Johann Georghehner, who lived in Coburg, Germany, invented the hot dog during the late 1600s, and traveled to Frankfurt to promote his new food.